Google says it will take over a troubled municipal fiber-optic system and make Provo, Utah, the third city to get its high-speed Internet service via fiber-optic cables.

Google Fiber was rolled out in Kansas City, Mo., last year. The Mountain View, Calif., company announced earlier this month Austin, Texas, will be the second city to get it.

The Provo deal is the first time Google is acquiring an existing system.

Provo created the fiber-optic network, iProvo, in 2004. The city planned to operate the system itself for Internet, television and phone service but found the operation too daunting and turned it over to a succession of private partners that have struggled to break even.